A Carol of Hell
by CZeke
Summary: There are Christmas stories even in Enma Ai's world. They just go a little differently.


"Silent night... holy night..."

So sang the carolers on the street, and they were half right. They stood one hundred stories below the most perfect silence in Tokyo. A man sat alone at his computer, watching an error page auto-refresh over and over. There was no other light. The room around him was as empty and still as his heart.

This was Shusendo Ishikyuusai. He was the fifth richest man in Japan, and he was here on business.

The last second ticked away. Midnight had arrived. The error page went dark, replaced with a lone wisp of flame, a text box, and a short message: "I will exact your vengeance."

Shusendo didn't hesitate. He typed a name into the box and submitted it. And then...

Nothing happened.

Should it have? Shusendo's composure cracked slightly; he fidgeted, looked around the room. How was this Hotline to Hell supposed to work, anyway? Would he be contacted now or later? In person or by some other means?

His contemplation was interrupted by a sound, faint at first, coming from the adjoining living room. It was a sound of... scratching. Scraping.

Nervous, and feeling silly for it, Shusendo went next door. The sound was getting louder, making it easy for him to find the source. It was coming from - no, it couldn't be. The fireplace?

There was no mistake. The sound was definitely coming from that location. It could easily be the sound of someone climbing down. Shusendo might have suspected some Christmas-themed prank were it not for one uncomfortable fact: _the fireplace was fake_. It had no chimney connected to it.

A less disciplined man would have panicked, but Shusendo was not so easily moved. Kneeling in front of the fireplace, he held very still and listened carefully. After a few minutes, he began to notice patterns in the noise. It was too regular to be a person's movement. What was more, he didn't feel any of the heat that this substitute furnace should have been giving off.

A malfunction. This was nothing more than a glitch, some partially disconnected bit of wiring in the machine. Shusendo smiled at his fear. He switched off the mechanism, making a mental note to have it inspected, and began to get up.

Something stopped him.

It wasn't something physical. It was in his mind. All of a sudden, Shusendo knew beyond any doubt that he was no longer alone. There was something there in the darkness, something crushing. It was right behind his back. He couldn't get up. He couldn't turn his head.

A young woman's voice said, "You summoned me."

Shusendo forced the word "Yes" through his throat. It took every ounce of willpower he had. All his instincts were screaming at him to say no, to pray she would let him back out now with his life and sanity intact.

All at once, the pressure was gone, and so was the whole world around him.

* * *

A twilit field stretched out in all directions as far as Shusendo's eyes could see. In front of him was a single tree, and under the tree was a girl. She wore a school uniform and looked no more than sixteen years old. But no teenager could ever have been so utterly still and emotionless. No human being could have possessed those eyes.

Without question, she was the one Shusendo had hoped to contact. The rumours were true. The Hell Girl was real.

Somehow, in this place, her presence no longer overwhelmed him. Whatever the reason, he was glad of it. He could hardly have done business in such a condition. Quickly collecting himself, he prepared to speak, but the Hell Girl spoke first.

"I am Enma Ai," she said. "If you seek vengeance, take this."

She handed him a crude doll made of straw - the kind a child would make. It was white, with a green thread tied around its neck. Shusendo raised an eyebrow, but reached out to take it. As soon as his hand touched the doll, he understood. He could feel the power within.

"If you remove the string," she explained, "you shall officially enter into a contract with me. The one you seek revenge upon shall be taken immediately to Hell. However, if I deliver your revenge, I must have you make restitution to me."

Shusendo nodded. This was business, after all.

"When a curse is cast, two graves are dug. When you die, your soul shall fall into the pit of Hell. Your spirit shall wander forever in pain and suffering, never having known paradise."

So that rumour was true as well. Not all of Shusendo's sources had agreed on the cost of a transaction with the Hell Girl. He had held out some slight hope that she might accept money or something else finite, but he could tell now, without even asking, that this was the one and only deal she would make.

It was worth it. He reached for the green string.

"Wait," said Enma Ai.

He looked up.

"There is another condition. Fate must not be manipulated lightly. I must be satisfied that your contract is truly in the service of vengeance."

Shusendo frowned. The rumours hadn't mentioned this part.

"You will be visited by three spirits."

Something seemed oddly familiar, but Shusendo couldn't place it. "Is that really necessary?"

"Without their visits, I will not deliver your revenge. The first spirit will come in one hour."

Without warning, Shusendo was back in front of his fireplace. The Hell Girl was nowhere to be seen - but she wasn't done being heard. Her final words filled the whole room around him: "The rest is up to you."

Alone, the businessman took in the new information. Three spirits? What was this, some kind of screening process? Who knew the afterlife was so bureaucratic?

No matter. His vengeance would pass any test.

There was a reason he had chosen to make this contract. Whatever torments Hell could offer, he had suffered worse. Nothing could ever end his pain. Only one thing could alleviate it, just for a little while.

He would warm his soul on the pyre of the man responsible.

* * *

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah, for what it's worth. He won't do it. No one ever has."

"Wait and see."

* * *

**Next: Once Upon a Time**


End file.
